Calif. Crown is introduced; Preakness purse is raised
The Grade 1 race rebranded as the $1 million California Crown was formally introduced Friday as part of a series linking the 2024 Preakness and the 2025 Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) with a $5 million bonus for a horse who wins all three.
A news release from 1/ST, the racing brand of the Stronach Group, also said the purse for the Preakness would be boosted from $1.5 million to $2 million starting May 18 with the race’s 149th running.
“My team and I continue to believe and invest in the modernization of Thoroughbred horse racing with a commitment to the highest level of international safety standards and horse care as we continue to elevate our already industry-leading wagering, entertainment and hospitality programs,” 1/ST CEO Belinda Stronach said. “To back this up, 1/ST is adding to the legacy of the Preakness by increasing the purse, creating a new marquee race event for the majestic Santa Anita Park, The California Crown, and continuing to build on the phenomenal success of the Pegasus World Cup.”
Started in 1982 as the Goodwood Handicap at the old Oak Tree meet, the California Crown more recently was run as the $300,000 Awesome Again. That name came with its upgrade in 2012 to a Grade 1 race. It still will go 1 1/8 miles for 3-year-olds and up on the main track, and it is expected to remain a win-and-you’re-in qualifier for the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
The 1/ST news release said the California Crown would be run Sept. 28 as part of “a reimagined opening-day experience for the track’s 2024 fall meet.” Since that date is a Saturday, it would mark the first time since 2015 that the meet did not start on a Friday.
1/ST said the new series will have as much as $25 million in purses and incentives. The stakes on the three big race cards at Pimlico, Santa Anita and Gulfstream Park will carry more than $12.5 million in elevated purses and $7.5 in incentives as well as the new bonus.
The increase in the Preakness purse comes the same year as the other two U.S. classics boosted their prize money, too. The Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs went from $3 million to $5 million and the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga from $1.5 million to $2 million.
A $2.5 million bonus will be on offer for a horse who sweeps the Dinner Party (G3), the John Henry Turf (G2) and Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1). The purse for the Dinner Party on the Preakness undercard at Pimlico was raised from $200,000 to $500,000.
Two downhill-grass stakes on the inaugural California Crown card, namely the John Henry Turf and the Eddie D. Turf Sprint (G2), will have their purses boosted from $200,000 to $750,000 each.
These increases come on the heels of 1/ST’s across-the-board purse cuts of 5 percent at Santa Anita and 25 percent in the final season at Golden Gate Fields, which is scheduled to close June 9.
The Pegasus World Cup Invitational on Jan. 25 will continue to carry a $3 million purse. A single owner who wins both that race and the Pegasus World Cup Turf, still worth $1 million, will be paid a $7.5 million bonus.
1/ST also said it is putting up $5 million for a coast-to-coast bet that will reward anyone who picks the first four finishers, in order, of the Preakness, California Crown and Pegasus World Cup. It will be free to enter the challenge via the 1/ST Bet app. If no one gets all 12 horses in the exact order, the entry with the most correct selections will win $100,000.